The Taj

After a short and sleepless night I was awoken 15 minutes before my 5am alarm by the sound of scraping chairs above me, I got up and dressed and once again climbed the stairs to the roof terrace. This time I was greeted by the Taj in all her glory bathed in the morning twighlight, oh and a slightly surprised cleaner who was happily dragging the cast iron chairs around the roof.

Having forgotten my tiredness I was eager to get up close and personal. I wandered through the empty streets stopping of at a chai seller to perk myself up with caffeine and a bread stick. The ticket office was empty bar a few other bleary eyed tourists but judging by the snaking entry barriers this was not the norm. I entered the complex which was already buzzing with happy snappers and guide touts, I shrugged them off quite happy just to be immersed in the beauty of the Taj, ignorance is bliss indeed. Walking through the large gate I was met by the immaculate gardens and the infamous reflection pools leading to the majesty of the Taj Mahal which had now taken on a slightly pinkish tinge with the breaking of dawn. I joined the hustle and bustle of everyone trying to take the perfect shot of the scene, trying to do justice to the whole symmetry of the place (these spots were unferstandably popular and the meek had no chance!). I walked slowly towards the main building snapping whenever possible a shot that would actually try and do justice to one of the new wonders of the world.

A strict policy on footwear is adopted and whilst you are issued with blue plastic shoe covers at the entrance I just left my shoes at the racks and went barefoot. On entering I was slightly taken aback by how small it felt, and of course you are remided that this is actually a mausaleum, the two epitaphs of Shah Jahan and his wife lying side by side surrounded by a wall of lattice marble. The superior craftmanship of the tomb is undeniable, mainly of marble the closer you looked at a design the more detail you noticed. There is a series of interconnecting rooms that loop around the main chamber which take you out to the rear which over looks the large gardens over the river. After doing a couple of laps I decided to explore the two flanking buildings, one seemingly disused and the other a mosque, in a mainly Hindu country its easy to forget that it was under Muslim rule for a long time and that the Taj was built under one of the greatest Mughal emperors.

It was exploring the mosque that a bumped into the girl I had met in Jaipur whilst there was no romance or secret espionage exchanges there was a mutual benifical agreement regarding photo taken, you get to get at least a couple snaps in the infamous Diana pose (well thats if you could be bothered to fight the ever increasing numbers pouring in). We sat in the gardens for a while before my rather insubstantial breakfast got the better of me and we parted ways. The mobs had well and truely arrived now and the empty barriers when I entered were now packed with impatient Indian tour groups all ducking and diving trying to gain a few extra places in line.

I grabbed an early lunch on my roof terrace where I could see clearly the ever increasing visitors and whilst I thanked myself for raising out of bed at 5am I was soon kickick myself for the lack of forsight into how difficult it would be to escape from Agra!